95.

96.

97.

98.

99.

And aye the further that she was in age,
The more true,* if that were possible,
She was to him, and more penible.

For which it seemed thus, that of them two
There was but oo will; for as Walter lest,
The same pleasaunce was her list also,
And, God be thanked! all fell for the best.
She shewed well, for no worldly unrest,
A wife, as of herself, nothing ne should
Will in effect, but as her husband would.
The sclander of Walter oft and wide spread,
That of a cruel heart he wickedly,

For he a poore woman wedded had,
Had murdered both his children privily.

Such murmur was among them commonly.

No wonder is; for, to the people's ear,

There came no word but that they murdered were.
For which, whereas his people therebefore
Had loved him well, the sclander of his defame
Made them that they him hateden therefor.

To ben a murderer is an hateful name.
But natheless, for earnest or for game,
He of his cruel purpose n'olde stent;
To tempt his wife was set all his intent.

When that his daughter twelf year was of age,
He to the court of Rome, in subtil wise
Informed of his will, sent his message
Commanding hem such bulles to devise,
As to his cruel purpose may suffice;
How that the pope, as for his people's rest,
Bade him to wed another, if him lest.

I say he bade, they shoulden counterfeit
The popes bulles, making mention

* More true. More a dissyl.-Penible, painstaking, capable of pain. See peyne, Index.― Oo (A. S. an; Fr. un; Lat. un-us; Gr. èv; Ger. ein; Ir. and Gael. aon, an, one), one.--Fell, happened.-Unrest, trouble, uneasiness, want of rest. -Would, would have it, would wish, wished. See wolde, Index.-Sclander (Fr. esclandre, Lat. scandalum, Gr. oxávdador, the stick or spring in a trap; a snare, offence, stumbling-block), scandal.-Wide. Dissyl.-For he = because he.-Game, play, joke. See Index. N'olde =ne would, would not.-Stent, to cease, desist. See st. 93.-Twelf, twelve (Goth. tva, two; lif, ten).-Message (Fr. messager, to send word; Lat. mittere, to send), messenger.-Hem, them.-Bulles (Lat. bulla, anything rounded by art, a roll, a seal; Fr. bulle; akin to bill), bulls.-Counterfeit (Lat. contra, against; facere, to make; Fr. contrefaire, contrefait).-Popes, etc. Scan this line. Name the root etc. of each word.

For which it seemed thus, that of them two. The sound of tw in two (corresponding by Grimm's law to du in Gr. and du in Lat.), in many words denotes two. No explanation is given.

The sclander of Walter oft and wide spread. The sound of spr, as in spread, denotes a spreading out; e. g., sprawl, spray, sprinkle. Other examples?

100.

101.

102.

103.

104.

That he had leave his firste wife to lete,*

As by the popes dispensation,

To stinten rancor and dissention

Betwixt his people and him. Thus said the bull;
The which they have published at the full.

The rude people, as no wonder is,
Wenden full well that it had been right so;
But when these tidings came to Griseldes,

I deeme that her heart was full of wo.
But she ylike sad forevermo

Disposed was, this humble creature,
The adversity of fortune all to endure.

Abiding ever his lust and his pleasance,
To whom that she was given, heart and all,
As to her very worldly suffisance.

But shortly if this story tell I shall,

This marquis written hath in special

A letter, in which he sheweth his intent,

And secretly he to Boloygne it sent.

To the earl of Panik, which that hadde tho
Wedded his sister, prayed he specially

To bringen home again his children two

In honorable estate all openly.

But one thing he him prayed utterly,

That he to no wight, though men would inquire,
Should not tellen whose children that they were;

But say the maiden should ywedded be

Unto the marquis of Saluce anon.

And as this carl was prayed, so did he,
For at day set, he on his way is gone
Toward Saluce, and lordes many on
In rich array, this maiden for to guide,
Her younge brother riding by her side.
Arrayed was toward her marriage,
This freshe maiden, full of gemmes clear;

Her brother, which that seven year was of age

Arrayed eke full fresh in his mannere.

Lete, leave.-Stinten, restrain, stop.-At the full in full.-Wenden, thought. See wende, Index.-Ylike, alike. See Index.-Suffisance (Fr. suffisant, sufficient; Lat. sufficere, to suffice), sufficiency.-Tho (A. S. thonne; O. Eng. thanne; Ger. dann), then.-Utterly (A. S. ut, out; utter, outer; utemest, outermost), most particularly.--Many on, many a one.---Arrayed. The ed of preterites and past participles is regularly a separate syllable in Chaucer. So -es in the pos. and in the plu. The terminal "e" is usually a syllable in Chaucer.

That he to no wight, though men would inquire. The sound of q ( = k) in inquire, is supposed to have a natural fitness to express interrogation. E. g., Sans. kas, Gr, -kos, whence comes xóтepos; Lat. quis, who, Moso-Goth. hwas, Lith. kas, Russ. koi, Gael. co, who? A. S. hwa (h for k, by Grimm's law); Eng. who? No explanation is found. Other examples?

105.

106.

107.

108.

And thus in great noblesse and with glad cheer,
Toward Saluces shaping her* journey,

From day to day they riden in hir way.

PARS QUINTA.

Among all this, after his wicked usage,
This marquis, yet his wife to tempten more
To the utterest proof of her courage,
Fully to have experience and lore,

If that she were as steadfast as before-
He on a day in open audience

Full boisterously hath said her this sentence:
"Certes, Griseld, I had enough pleasance
To have you to my wife, for your goodness,
And for your truth and for your obeisance,
Not for your lineage, ne for your richesse;
But now know I, in very soothfastness,
That in great lordship, if I well avise,
There is great servitude in sundry wise.

"I may not do as every ploughman may:
My people me constraineth for to take
Another wife, and cryen day by day:
And cke the pope rancor for to slake
Consenteth it, that dare I undertake;
And trewely thus much I will you say,
My newe wife is coming by the way.

"Be strong of heart, and void anon her place,
And thilke dower that ye broughten me,

* Shaping her . . . . . riden in hir. Her and hir each their. A. S. hira, heora, of them (genitive, or pos., plu.)-Courage, disposition.-Lore, learning, knowledge.-Boisterously (Ice, bistr; D. byster, stormy; O. Eng. boistous, furious; boist, swelling; akin to boast; W. bwyst, wild, savage; bwystus; Low Ger. biester, frowning, dark, ugly; Fr. bis, swarthy).Said her, said to her.-I had enough, etc., I was well enough pleased to have you as my wife. -For your goodness, on account of your goodness.-Soothfastness, truth. See soothly, Index. For -ness, see homeliness, Index.—Avise, observe, reflect.-Eke, also. See Index.-Pope (A. S., Lat., It., Fr., Ger., D., Dan., Sp. рара; Gг. пáпла, áñа, father; O. Eng. pape), the bishop of Rome, the chief dignitary of the Catholic Church. Pope is here dissyl.-Rancor for to slake, to appease rancor. Rancor (Lat. rancor, rancidity, an old grudge, rancor; Fr. rancune), settled malignity.-Trewely (A. S. treowe, triwe, faithful; Ger. treu, getreu; A. S. treowian, to believe, trust), truly. Trisyl.-Will you say, will say to you.--Void (Lat. vid-uus, separate, widowed; Fr. vide. Vid, the Lat., is the same as in vid-ère, to separate with the eye, to see. A. S. weoduwe, widuwe; Ger, wittwe; Lat. vid-ua; Eng. wid-ow), make empty, quit. See wost, Index.-Thilke, that same. Give root, root-meaning, etc., of each word in this line.

What power over foreign princes had the Pope in Chaucer's time? Was there then in England or on the Continent any form of Protestantism? What were Chaucer's religious sympathies? With what prominent English nobleman was he associated?

And thus in great noblesse and with glad cheer. The sound of gl, as in glad, denotes smoothness or silent motion. E. g., Ger. glatt, smooth, even; A. S. glad; Eng. glide, glib. This signification probably arises by analogy from the smooth sound. Other examples?

109.

110.

111.

112.

Take it again, I grant it of my grace.

Returneth to your fatheres house," quoth he,
"No man may always have prosperity.

With even heart I rede you to endure
The stroke of fortune, or of adventure."
And she again answered in patience.
"My Lord," quoth she, "I wot and wist alway,
How that, betwixen your magnificence
And my poverty, no wight can ne may
Maken comparison, it is no nay.

I ne held me never digne in no mannere
To ben your wife, ne yet your chamberere.
"And in this house there ye me lady made,
(The highe God take I for my witness,

And all so wisly he my soule glad!)

I never held me lady ne mistress,

But humble servant to your worthiness,

And ever shall, while that my life may dure,
Aboven every worldly creature.

"That ye so long of your benignity
Han holden me in honor and nobley,
Whereas I was not worthy for to be,

That thank I God and you, to whom I pray
Foryeld it you; there is no more to say.

Unto my father gladly will I wend,

And with him dwell unto my life's end.

"There I was fostered as a child full small, Till I be dead my life there will I lead,

A widow clean in body, heart, and all.

*Returneth. Impera. plu.-Even heart, equanimity.-Rede, advise. St. 86.-Adventure (Lat. adventurus, about to come; fr. advenire, to come on or to), hap, chance.Wist, knew. See wost, Index.-Betwixen (A. S. be, and twyg, two; Lat. duo. See tway, st. 60), between.-Poverty (Lat. paupertas, poverty; pauper, poor; O. Fr. poverte; Fr. pauvrete). The 2d syl. is acc.; probably because it is so in the Lat.-It is no nay. It cannot be denied.Digne, worthy.-Chamberere (Gr. κaμápa, Lat. camera, arched roof; Fr. chambre, chamber), chambermaid.--There, where.-Wisly, certainly. He my soule glad, may he gladden my soul! Soule, dissyl.-Han (0. Eng. plu.), have.-Nobley (Lat. no-scere, to know; nob-ilis, well known, famous, noble; Fr. noblesse, nobility. See nempyned, st. 79), distinction.-Foryeld (A. S. for, forth, away, fr. faran, to go. For, as an inseparable preposition, denotes.-(1) simple removal; as in forbid, to bid away; forsake, to seek away, desert; (2) removal and disappearance; as, forgive, to give out of sight; forget, to let go out of mind; (3) removal and going wrong; as, forswear; (4) removal with added notion of completeness; as, forlorn, utterly lost; (5) the same as simple for; as, forsooth, for truth, in truth; (6) fore; as, forward. Yield is A. S. gildan, geldan, to pay, yield), repay.-Wend, go, wend. See went, Index.-There, where.

Unto my father gladly will I wend. The sound of ƒ in father (corresponding by Grimm's Law to p or ph in Lat., and # or 6 in Gr.), from the ease with which it is enounced, is employed to denote one of the first objects that interest the child. E. g., Sans. pitar, Zendish paiter, Pers. padar, Gr. márno, Lat. pater, Russ. balia, Ger. vater, Eng. father, and papa, Turk, peder.

113.

114.

115.

116.

For sith* I gave to you my maydenhede
And am your trewe wife, it is no drede,
God schilde such a lordes wife to take
Another man to husband or to make!

"And of your newe wife, God of his grace
So grante you weal and prosperity;
For I will gladly yelden her my place,
In which that I was blissful wont to be.
For sith it liketh you, my Lord," quoth she,
"That whilom weren all my heartes rest,
That I shall gon, I will go when you lest.

"But thereas ye me proffer such dowaire
As I first brought, it is well in my mind,
It were my wretched clothes, nothing faire,
The which to me were hard now for to find.
Oh, goode God! How gentle and how kind
Ye seemed by your speech and your visage,
That day that maked was our marriage!

"But soth is said, algate I find it true,
For in effect it proved is on me,

Love is not old, as when that it is new.
But certes, Lord, for none adversity
To dien in this case, it shall not be

That ever, in word or work, I shall repent
That I you gave mine heart in whole intent.
"My Lord, ye wot that in my father's place
Ye did me strip out of my poore weed,
And richely me cladden of your grace;
To you brought I nought elles out of drede
But faith and nakedness and maydenhede.

* Sith, since.-Maydenhede (A. S. mag, a boy; magedh, magden, a girl), maidenhood. See womanhood, st. 27.-Trewe, true. Dissyl. See trewely, st. 107.--It is no drede, there is no (occasion to) fear. See drad, st. 2.-Schilde (A. S. scild; Ger. and Dan. schild, shield; fr. Ice. and Sw. skyla, to cover, defend), shield, forbid.-Make (A. S. macian; Ger. machen; Dan. mage, to make, frame, fashion; A. S. maca, gemaca, gemacca, mate, husband, companion; Ice. maki, an equal, husband; Dan. mage, equal, mate, match, spouse; O. Eng. macche), a companion, a mate.--Yelden, yield. See foryelde, st. 111.-Gon, go.-Thereas, whereas.--Dowaire (Fr. douer, to endow; douaire; Lat. dotare, to endow, portion; fr. dos, a dowry, gift; fr. do, dare, to give, Gr. didwμi), dowry.-Soth, sooth, true, truly. See soothly, Index.-Algate (A. S. algeats, ir. enll, al, all, and geat, passage, door, way; Ger. gasse, path; Ice. and D. gat, opening), always.— For none adversity, etc., for no adversity (i. e.. notwithstanding any adversity, even to the extent) of dying in this case, shall it be that, etc. The student's attention is called to the touching pathos of the last three lines of the preceding stanza. The whole speech is remarkable.-Weed (A. S. wad, a garment; O. Fries. wede; fr. Goth. vid-an, to bind), clothing.

O goode God! How gentle and how kind. The sound of o in God, being a short sound, is more appropriate to express littleness than greatness. There is a sense of congruity in the enunciation of the word jot; but of incongruity in uttering the word God. Such an exception proves the rule. This sound sometimes denotes surprise or harshness. Examples?